He then began reading it word by word.
Kin'emon's eyes widened like saucers, his stare locked onto the first rule of the contract.
Time seemed to freeze.
All the noise around them faded away until only his heavy breathing and pounding heartbeat remained.
As his eyes moved down the page, his face darkened like a heavy storm cloud, instantly turning a pale, ghostly white.
Just beneath the surface, anger and hatred began to boil.
"Th-this rule is simply..." Kin'emon's lips shook with anger.
His voice turned rough as the words caught in his throat, refusing to come out.
His chest moved up and down heavily, as if a massive fire was burning inside his heart, barely held back and ready to explode.
"Lord Ron! Does this first rule mean you want to end the Kozuki bloodline?!"
Finally, Kin'emon could not hold back his feelings anymore.
He snapped his head up, his eyes burning with angry flames that seemed ready to stab right through Ron.
Nearby, Momonosuke slowly snapped out of his daze.
His already pale face lost all its remaining color.
His eyes filled with pure terror and a refusal to give in, his body shaking out of control.
"I... I do not want to sign this..." Momonosuke's voice carried a weak sob.
He pressed his lips tightly together, his hands gripping the edge of his clothes without him realizing it, trying to find even a tiny bit of safety in the heavy air.
Ron merely scoffed coldly—this was something he had almost forgotten—before adding a new line to the end.
"If it is for the sake of continuing the family line, a special request may be made to the Divine Kingdom."
"Satisfied now?" Ron lifted his chin slightly, looking down at Kin'emon with total disrespect.
"When the time comes, I will personally pick a proper marriage partner for him. I promise... it will be someone of equal social standing."
Kin'emon's lips moved, as if he wanted to make one final argument.
But right then, Izo shot him a sharp glare.
That look carried a deep warning and a strict order to stop, forcing Kin'emon to swallow the words right back down.
The older samurai took a long, heavy breath, blowing out all the frustration and helplessness in his heart.
Finally, looking as if all his strength was gone, he dropped his head in defeat and whispered.
"...Understood."
With both men watching him, Momonosuke's body shook even harder.
He slowly reached out, shakily taking the feather pen.
The pen felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, making it incredibly hard for his weak arm to hold it up.
Just as the tip of the pen carefully touched the paper, right before he signed his name, the entire contract suddenly exploded with a blinding golden light!
The light was as bright as the sun, lighting up the whole area.
"Ah!" Momonosuke cried out, his voice full of fear and panic.
Inside the glowing light, the contract split into two pieces.
They turned into two streaks of light that shot straight toward his and Ron's foreheads, vanishing into their skin instantly.
Momonosuke stared in pure terror.
He quickly reached up to touch his forehead, but he found no mark left behind—only a strange, heavy feeling resting in his mind.
"The contract is complete," Ron said. "From now on, if you break any of the rules..."
He paused on purpose, his stare locking onto Momonosuke for a long moment.
"...you will learn what it means to wish you were dead."
Momonosuke shivered all over. He suddenly felt an invisible chain wrapping tightly around his very soul.
The chains squeezed him, making it hard to breathe.
He knew that from this moment on, his life belonged entirely to the man standing in front of him.
He had no freedom left at all.
Kin'emon closed his eyes in deep pain, his eyebrows tied in a tight knot, as if he was trying to block out all the suffering.
Beside him, Izo looked out into the distance, his eyes showing deep thought.
High up in the sky, the Dragons flew through the clouds, their massive bodies shining with a golden glow in the sunlight.
Down below, the shape of the Land of Wano was already clear to see.
This country, closed off from the world for hundreds of years, was about to face the biggest change in its history.
Over the once-peaceful land, the heavy sound of fate's gears turning seemed to echo through the air.
The other captains watching from the shadows all let out a shared sigh of relief.
Marco slowly rubbed his tight forehead, the worry lines slowly smoothing out.
Jozu's tight muscles also relaxed bit by bit.
He rolled his shoulders, letting out a few soft sighs.
Vista let out a loud, happy laugh. He picked up his wine jug again and tilted his head back for a massive drink.
His joyful drinking felt like a celebration of a hard-won victory.
"Thankfully..." Marco adjusted his glasses, the look in his eyes complicated and hard to read.
His eyes shined with old memories, thinking back to Oden's stubborn choice to stay in the Land of Wano twenty years ago.
Back then, Oden's eyes had been full of determination and pure stubbornness.
Marco sighed softly.
If Oden had just been willing to accept Pops' help back then, maybe everything would have been different.
The Land of Wano would not have suffered through these last twenty years, and its people would not have had to struggle to survive through hunger and pain.
Jozu rubbed the stubble on his chin, lowering his voice as he spoke.
"Ron handled it perfectly. Not only did he spare Momonosuke's life, but..."
He looked over at the still-shaking Momonosuke, a tiny flash of pity in his eyes.
"...he gave that kid a lesson he will never forget."
Vista gently rubbed the handle of his favorite sword, a bitter smile showing on his lips.
"To be honest, I have very mixed feelings about Oden... a mix of respect and anger."
He shook his head, a look of helplessness in his eyes.
"He could have asked Pops for help, but he chose to believe in some prophecy instead..."
The division commanders shared a knowing look.
They all remembered how Oden had never actually asked for help back then—deep down, he had never truly relied on them—and they remembered his final words.
"This is a test the Land of Wano must face alone."
"And what was the result?" Jozu could not help but mutter. "His wife died, his home was destroyed, and his people suffered for twenty years..." He scoffed heavily.
"Was that not just pride coming before the fall?"
Marco raised his hand to stop his brother's complaints.
"Enough, we should respect the dead." Yet his eyes also showed a hint of anger.
As one of Oden's closest friends back then, he understood better than anyone that if Oden had just been willing to put aside his so-called "pride," the Land of Wano would never have fallen into this terrible state.